Wind of Change

And the term "change" can mean so many things. It affects companies of all sizes. The possibilities, opportunities, risks and consequences of digital transformation (DT) are increasingly being discussed.

The voice that is heard most in and out of the company is that of the CEO, or at least from the CxO level. It is heard most clearly by customers, shareholders, business partners and employees, but is only a whisper on the subject of digital transformation.

This is the subject of a small study by the WBS Group, which analyzed the current speeches at the annual general meetings of DAX30 companies in June. The terms used were "digital", "transformation", but also "innovation", "artificial intelligence" and others.

At Wirecard, as a fintech company by definition technology-savvy, the terms appeared over 60 times, followed by Henkel with about half and then the numbers are already going down.

Even Bill McDermott only gets eleven mentions as CEO of the German IT flagship company. Things look better for SAP when we look at the CEO's presence in social media.

The statement in the Digital DAX Analysis 2018 "Everything is going digital - except the boss" by Oliver Wyman does not apply to McDermott, who is the leader in terms of followers on Twitter and LinkedIn.

In contrast to the other CEOs. Here there is a clear disparity in DACH: In the Swiss SMI, 53 percent of CEOs were active on social media, in the Austrian ATX almost as many with 47 percent, and in the German DAX only a meager 23 percent, or seven CEOs.

Of course, the example of social media does not mean that a company is driving digital transformation, but it is an important indication. The CEO is the figurehead of the company. If the CEO doesn't hold the media air supremacy, who will?

Well, the "who" could also be the CDO. However, the Chief Digital Officer is also still a rare species. According to a study by Korn Ferry last November, only two of the 80 largest companies in the DAX/MDAX had a CDO on the board.

After all, some companies have assigned the topic of digitization to a board member of other departments or directly under the COO, as is the case at SAP under COO Christian Klein.

SAP itself sees the need for companies to catch up in terms of digital transformation in exactly the same way. In the SAP and Oxford Economics study "4 Ways Leaders Set Themselves Apart," the Walldorf-based company identified only three percent of companies as leaders, defined as companies that have completed their digital projects across their entire organization.

Twenty-two percent of companies are already planning for the entire organization, 19 percent have completed subprojects, and 55 percent are piloting. Only one percent have not even started planning.

Now, it can be assumed with such surveys that they are more likely to be answered positively. Who would want to admit - even in a questionnaire - that they are not yet ready?

SAP itself points to technologies such as analytics, big data, blockchain, cloud, Internet of Things, machine learning and AI, and mobile technologies as drivers of DT.

That is correct as far as the SAP solution kit is concerned. For example, virtual and augmented reality or robot process automation or smart supply chains are missing. In reality, however, digital transformation is much more difficult and different for each company.

In addition to permanently improving one's own performance of existing processes and products, it is increasingly about creating new offerings that would not be possible without today's solutions. The second side is the world outside one's own company.

On the one hand, this is the fast and secure connection to your current and future business partners. And the creation of completely new value chains and customer journeys.

In the Scorpions' song "Wind of Change", "Listening to the wind of change" appears in the refrain. My wish is, don't just listen to the changes, but actively shape them for your company.

Sources:

www.wbs-gruppe.de/umwelt-digitalisierung-reden/
https://www.oliverwyman.de/content/dam/oliver-wyman/v2-de/publications/2018/Feb/Digital_DAX_final.pdf
https://www.sap.com/dmc/exp/4-ways-leaders-set-themselves-apart/
https://www.sap.com/germany/trends/digital-transformation.html

Follow me on Twitter: @michaelfkramer

Michael Kramer, Digital Transformation Enthusiast and Member of the Supervisory Board of E-3 Verlag B4Bmedia.net AG, Twitter @michaelfkramer